Youth Matters: Lenten Resources for Families

Lent is a meaningful season in the Christian calendar. It’s a 40-day journey leading up to Easter in which we pause, reflect, and remember Christ’s sacrifice for us. This year, we want every child and family in our territory to experience that journey in a meaningful, hands-on way.

Over the past two years, the Territorial Youth Department has worked within the territorial theme for the Lenten season, providing devotionals and resources for children and families, to allow all Salvationists, no matter their age, to focus, learn, and walk together. This year, we continue within the theme The Journey That Changed the World, moving from the cradle, to the cross, and ultimately to the crown. Our goal is simple: to help families encounter Jesus together through scripture, prayer, and everyday discipleship practices during the Lenten season.

This year’s Lent bundle includes five family-friendly resources designed to help households engage with the story of Easter together.

First, continuing from our Advent emphasis, we have included a prayer chain for kids and families to create. Each day, families are encouraged to remove one link from the chain and spend intentional time in prayer seeking God together.

The bundle also includes a Lenten Map, a visual and interactive way for families to journey through the Easter story. Using the included game piece, families can move along the map each day while reading a selected scripture passage paired with a simple icon. This resource is meant to spark conversation, reflection, and shared application as families walk through Lent together.

Additionally, we are offering a Lent Tracker. While many families traditionally “give something up” for Lent, we wanted to expand this practice by offering two daily options: either give something up or intentionally add an act of kindness. Children can track their choices each day as they grow in faith, self-discipline, and love for others.

Finally, the bundle includes two sets of family Holy Week devotionals — one designed for children and families and another tailored for middle and high school students. The children’s devotional features contributions from eight officers and leaders across the territory and includes memory verses, simple activities, and discussion questions that can be used at home or within corps programs. These materials could easily shape meaningful youth gatherings during Holy Week. The student devotional offers a daily reflection, a practical challenge, and a prayer to help young people engage deeply with the events of Holy Week.

Corps leaders may also find a variety of creative ways to incorporate these resources into their ministries throughout Lent and Holy Week. The Lenten Map could be used as a weekly children’s moment in worship or referenced during Sunday school and midweek programs. Some corps may choose to send one resource home at a time to help families focus week by week, while others may introduce the full bundle at the beginning of the season. The Holy Week devotionals can easily shape meaningful youth nights, small group discussions, or family gatherings, and leaders might even invite families to share what they are learning along the way to encourage one another in faith.

We pray that these resources will be a blessing to you and your corps. May the Lord use them to draw children, youth, and families closer to Him, shaping the hearts of our youngest disciples and lifting high the name of Jesus.

All resources are available now for download in English, Spanish, and Korean through the Youth Down South portal on ministrytoolkit.org.